gunsights? or surveyor symbols?

You decide [click].

Or ask Pinocchio.

Pinkwash

pinkwash -- v. To smear one with false allegations of "socialism" (at a time when a so-called conservative president is presiding over the largest government intervention since FDR's efforts during the Great Depression, when Republicans even opposed the idea of Social Security as a "socialist" move).

Word Counts, Revisited

I take back what I said about words in the previous post. Sort of.

Words count. But so does counting words.

Dr. James W. Pennebaker, a professor of psychology at the University of Texas, counts words and analyzes what the array of our words and their number say about us, whether we are lying, what our motives are, whether our relationships are changing, other patterns, et cetera, ad infinitum.

When I was an English teacher, I loathed when students would pencil in their running tally of words in their assigned writing. They'd pencil in pesky little numerals above their text -- text that usually consisted of What The Teacher Wants To Hear. Yawn. And I told them I loathed that practice because they were paying more attention to the number of words than the content of the words. They'd say, "Mr. K, how long does the assignment have to be?"

"I don't know; as long as it's good," and they'd howl.

Who knew the kids were inadvertently on to something?

Click on the link here for the article in today's Science Times; fascinating.

Plus, check out Wordwatchers, Dr. Pennebaker's intriguing website that provides dispassionate and sober critiques comparing word use by, yes, of course, McCain and Obama (and the other candidates).

So, now, this blog has explored the linguistic gamut, From Um to Eternity.

Three Very Simple Questions

Q. Why is virtually no one (candidates, newspapers, newscasters, bloggers, magazines) talking anymore about the real estate ("subprime" mortgage = multiple-party greed) crisis and its ripple effect on the whole economy?

Q. As with the savings and loan debacle twenty years ago, is it because the topic is considered too complicated, not sexy enough?

Q. Why aren't the Democrats seizing upon this as an utterly classic and delicious example of the need for government regulatory oversight, which in the heyday of so-called conservative so-called deregulation has all but vanished without a whisper?

Vote for Me

Of course, the motto of the Solipsist Party is "It's ALL About Moi" (if you're going to be snooty, it never hurts to throw in le mot juste en francais).

I voted this evening. I did not vote for me, betraying the great solipsistic principles this land, and this weblog, was built on. (Should I have typed were? Perhaps. My grammar cortex lobe is resting.)

We have old-fashioned voting machines here with levers that click firmly in place. I like it that way. I hope we never switch to the newfangled devices.

The act of voting makes me feel proud to exercise the privilege, recognizing that many have died to safeguard this right.

Then again, I sometimes feel cheated. Sort of like buyer's remorse. These are the best choices available to us? One official I'm pleased to vote for ran unopposed, but he works harder than anyone, going door-to-door to meet his constituents. That's how I met him. And he's not like that only at election time.

Too often our system rewards the richest, the most connected, the most feckless, the most harmless, the most shallow. On the national level, that's true exponentially.

Wouldn't we feel better if candidates unabashedly embraced their solipsistic inner child? Wouldn't we feel relieved to hear a candidate get honest for once and say, "You know what, folks? I'm in this for the prestige, the ego flattery, the attention, and the connections this will get me. Vote for me."